Monster
by Flaming Author 22
Summary: Sometimes it is only through blood that heroes see they have become monsters. Short oneshot. Lancaster elements.


**AN: A quick one-shot I wanted to make. I hope you all enjoy.**

 **Monster**

Jaune stood alone outside the now abandoned school. The school was once known as Beacon Academy.

The school was once teaming with life. A place to inspire hope amongst humanity's dark future.

The school itself had been attacked and destroyed a few years ago.

It was a time when the war against Salem escalated and became something more than just a shadow war fought by Ozpin.

Jaune had lost his first partner that night when the school fell. He and the reminder of his friends journeyed to Mistral and met up at Haven Academy.

Now after years of fighting both the Grimm and the White Fang they had won. The White was now being reformed by Blake and Sun.

Cinder had laid dead at Ruby's feet before Salam herself had eventually fallen.

The Grimm were still a threat of course but they had dealt a major blow to the darkness.

The price however was Ruby.

They had won because of Ruby learning to use her incredible power. A power that stemmed from her silver eyes.

As Ruby's power grew so did her ego. Her sense of justice and that her will was righteous and the only way for mankind to follow.

As time continued it became more and more extreme. Eventually to the point where all who didn't share her view had no right to live.

Now four years after the fall of Beacon a new threat resided in the Academy.

The red reaper herself.

Her new power allowed her to do more than just fight and kill. She took it to an unseen height. Her new power allowed her to _create._

To make creatures similar to the Grimm. Now Ruby had deemed mankind too tainted with evil.

That humanity must be purged and remade a new if the world was to truly get better.

Ruby viewed herself as a God to bring judgment.

That was why Jaune was here alone.

The others were fighting else ware and he knew he could see Ruby without getting attacked by her minions.

Ruby had judged him as the sole exception. That he Jaune Arc was allowed to live while all others must perish.

Jaune wasn't so dense as to now know the reason eather.

After his partner, had died during the fall of Beacon and Ruby's team was scattered they traveled together for almost a year before reaching Haven.

Even before that they had always been close friends.

Shortly after Salam was slain, he and Ruby started to date. He couldn't deny his affection for her had grown over the years.

However, after Ruby went insane with power he broke it off.

Jaune slowly started to walk into the now dark halls of the Academy. It was symbolic that Ruby chose to use Beacon Academy as her base of operations.

For Ruby felt she would be the beacon of humanity once the purge was complete and humanity was made anew.

It didn't take long for him to make it to Ruby's newly made throne room.

It was here the red death sat. Her silver eyes glowing. Raw aura seemed to manifest from her open left palm.

She noticed him the moment he had entered the room. Chances are she had known he was here the second he set foot on the Academy.

A cold smile formed on her lips.

"Jaune…You have finally returned to me."

She rose from her throne and her cold silver eyes met his. She slowly made her way down to him.

"Have you finally seen the light darling? That only once mankind has been wiped from the world will the darkness finally cease?"

' _Darling'_

That was her favorite name for him once they started dating. The name once made him feel warm and flustered now felt cold and perverted.

He could see it in her eyes. She was truly warped at this point.

Nothing he could say would bring the old Ruby back. The one he had fallen in love with.

Now this sick abomination had soiled her once pure memory.

He didn't waste any more time in drawing his blade.

Crocea Mors had undergone various upgrades over the years but it's core was still the same.

"Ruby stop this madness. I don't want to fight you. Especially after all we have been through together."

Her smile seemed to grow and become even more twisted.

"Oh, Jaune you know I don't want to fight you either. Put down your blade and come join me in ushering in a new dawn for the world."

She was now so close to him.

She extended her hand to him. Beckoning him to take it.

He couldn't. He refused to forsake everyone else, even for the girl he still loved.

However, this presented an opportunity. This could be his only chance to strike her down and end it all for good.

Perhaps once Ruby had died all the fighting would end.

"Jaune I know what you're thinking…Don't try it. You know you can't beat me."

He ignored her warning and started to charge anyway.

"Darling stop! I don't want to hurt you!"

He refuted her." If you truly thought that then you wouldn't have tried to hurt our friends. Our family's! You brought all of this on yourself!"

She still didn't understand.

She never would.

"Because their hearts are tainted by darkness. Your heart and mine are the only pure ones."

That made him stop. It was pure madness.

"How am I any purer then the others?"

She waved it off as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Because you truly want to help people Jaune. The others are fueld by negative emotions even when they want to do good. Weiss is driven by making her family name more known to the world. Driven by greed. Blake is driven by vengeance. Yang is driven by selfish desire for self-indulgence in adventure."

That didn't make any sense to him.

"Yours on the other hand was to truly be a hero and help people. Together my love we can create a world where only the pure of heart exist."

So, it would be a world with just the two of them. A lonely sad world. A world he wanted no part of.

He had to end this now and continued his attack.

"Jaune stop! If you go any further, I'll have to hurt you. Don't do it."

His blade didn't stop has he attempted to pierce her now cold heart.

He didn't make it.

Not even close.

Her speed was far more incredible then he had remembered.

He felt a blade skewer him as his world turned upside down and he felt the cold ground.

Something wet fell on his face.

It wasn't blood but tears.

"I told you to stop! You didn't listen and now this happened…"

Jaune looked down to see the bottom half of his body slashed. Blood oozed out of him and yet he no longer felt a thing.

For all her power Ruby, didn't have the power to heal him. He wouldn't be here long.

"Jaune stay with me! You know I didn't want this so why did you attack me anyway!? Why when you knew you couldn't win?"

The irony was almost funny if it wasn't sad.

"Ruby it's like you said…I want to help people no matter what. Even if I know I'll die I still want to try and save everyone."

With his final words spoken his vision faded black and he entered the realm of the dead.

"No! Come back to me, damn it! This wasn't supposed to happen. I love you and we were supposed to be together forever. Why did you force my hand!?"

No answer came.

So much of his blood now polled the once shiny floor.

So much so that Ruby could see her reflection.

All she saw was a monster.

 **AN: Well, I hope you enjoyed my first one-shot. I know it wasn't the best, but I wanted to try it. Feel free to let me know what I did wrong or what I did right. Either way, thanks for reading.**


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